10/10/10

I have been honest with you about my love for Kenny Shopsin. I've made his recipes, quoted him, dressed as him, and even pitched you culinary romantic comedies with him as the prideful protagonist. And all of this adoration has paid off in the form of friends sending me Shopsin-related articles, recipes, and thoughts (shopsinthoughts). This one for pumpkin pancakes came at me via my good friend Heather, via Saveur (Thank you, both!). Saveur had me at the photograph, but it wasn't until much later, until I began making the batter that I realized this recipe seemed very un-Shopsin-like. For starters, in his book Eat me: The Food and Philosophy of Kenny Shopsin, Mr. Shopsin admits that he doesn't like to make pancake batter, and in fact, uses frozen Aunt Jemima batter. It's been a while since I read Eat Me, but to make sure I was remembering correctly, I went back and re-enjoyed part of his explanation for using the frozen stuff:

"The only way I imagined I might be able to make a better pancakes [than the frozen stuff] was if I beat egg whites until stiff and then folded them into the batter, but the problem with this method is that the only thing I hate more than baking is beating f*cking egg whites. I go through so much batter that I knew if I did this, I was just going to be beating those egg whites for the rest of my life. So I cut bait and started using the frozen stuff instead."

This makes sense considering that 1.) Shopsin doesn't ef around doing things he doesn't like to do and 2.) for him, the pancake is all about equipment and technique anyway. He lays out his specifications for both in the subsequent section: The Art of Griddling. I know I mentioned this already in the mac 'n' cheese pancake post, but he goes into it with such conviction, I believe it deserves the double mention. There's much to take away from his notes on griddling, but what I believe is the most important is that the vast majority of us don't wait until the pan/griddle is hot enough. "Heat the griddle until a drop of water bounces off the surface. This is key," Shopsin writes. If you don't do this, to quote him yet again, but from another source: "different, bad things happen."

Thanks to his advice, with these pumpkin pancakes, similar, good things happened. I do wonder, though, if Shopsin makes his pumpkin pancakes from scratch or if he adjusts the Jemima batter accordingly. Either way, Matt and I enjoyed these and I think you will too.

Maybe it's the fact that only last week, LA was experiencing 100+ degree weather, but I feel like I've never been more excited about fall and fall cooking. The clove and cinnamon coming off these pancakes as they cooked on the stovetop with my bare feet gripping the cold kitchen tiles and a chilly, autumnal breeze blowing in through the windows placed me firmly within a Ruth Reichl tweet. Far too dreamy for real life. I had been running around all day, but it was one of those moments where I had to stop and say aloud: "I love coooking!!" Here's a Bon Appetempt suggestion: Buy the ingredients for these pancakes (they all keep), wait for that perfect fall day to make them, then (and, this is key) turn up a few songs in the realm of, or specifically, Mumford & Sons' The Cave, and love life.

2. Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a 12" nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Using a 1⁄4-cup measuring cup, pour batter into skillet to make three 3" pancakes. Cook until bubbles begin to form on the edges, 1–2 minutes. Flip and cook until done, 1–2 minutes more. Repeat with remaining oil and pancake batter. Serve pancakes hot with butter and syrup.

I use AJ complete powdered mix, making sure to start with room temp water and leaving many small lumps in the batter. I also use less water than what they suggest.For the big box - 8cups cold water + 5 cups warm water. Let the batter sit for a while. Load it into a squeezy container ( like a diner ketchup one) with the tip cut to make a larger opening. Put the amount you want in a small bowl and add plain canned pumpkin and Mara spice (my daughter's mix; I think it is cloves,ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice). Pour on a hot griddle, turn when the edges bubble. Making pan cakes is like baking bread; the temperature it cooks at is critical. If the griddle you are using is not thick and heat stable your pancakes will burn (too hot) or get gummy (to long of a cook) If your griddle is thin your only hope is to cook very small pancakes. All the rest of the instructions are not significant, but maintaining a constant, appropriate temperature is.

The above was set out, however, before my big culinary change of heart, as documented here. And while we're on the subject of pivotal moments... there have been a few over the (6) years, like this one and this one and, of course, this one AND now this one!